The Effect of the Recapitalisation and Development Programme on Agricultural Production of Land Reform Beneficiaries in the Eastern Cape Province of South Africa

Abstract

Access to land is a key part of socio-economic development in South Africa. It can be used as a way of rectifying the injustices of the past  and lessening the severity of poverty among beneficiaries. To address the issue of land reform, the Recapitalisation and Development Programme (RECAP) was introduced in 2009. The main objectives of this programme are to increase production, guarantee food security,  create employment opportunities within the agricultural sector, and graduate small farmers into commercial farmers. This study aimed  to analyse the impact of RECAP on land reform projects, focusing on agricultural production in the Eastern Cape. Both primary and  secondary data were used in the study, collected through farm/project visits. The results indicated that the programme has made  progress towards improving agricultural production on land reform projects since its inception of RECAP. Through RECAP intervention,  land reform beneficiaries gained technical skills.